Blue & Gold

I like this quote: "With training camp now headed into its third week, the offensive line under coach Mitch Browning has a chance to be a team strength."

Don't think this has been posted yet.

Good segment. I appreciate how candid RI is concerning tonight's lack of discipline/focus. That does give me a little cause for concern; we had waaaaay too many penalties last season. But it's still early. I'd really like to know/hear how the Lone Ranger is faring.

Nick Harney was the Zips' leading scorer w/ 15. Tree had 10.

Great! Thanks for the link!

Nice video wrap-up here. Link courtesy of News Collector.

McCrea is a stud.

Thanks for the updates! Keep them coming, please. I'm jealous you were able to make the trip!

Lots of exuberant hyperbole posted recently, but this one is pretty over-the-top. I'll give you the past 8-or-so years haven't seen too many eyeball-test teams. But in the 10 years previous, EMU (Dial, Head, Boykins), K.e.n.t (Elite 8 guys), Miami (Sczerbiak, Newble, Davis, etc), OU (Jamerson, Trent, Hunter, and many others), BG (Stacey/McCloud), Ball State (Lonnie Jones, Theron Smith, etc)....all have had some really legit rosters. And won some big games. Even Marshall had some big teams, with VanHoose and Slay. This group of Zips hasn't won anything. In the past, KD's teams have been ones where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Hopefully he can continue that, with the increased talent level. Then we'll have something extra-special. This will probably be KD's toughest year to coach. Dividing minutes will be tough. Zeke's a Junior...he needs to blossom big-time this year. Breaking-through and beating BCS-programs hasn't been done in a long time. I can't remember ever getting a single vote in any "real" basketball poll, let alone Top 25 ranking. A few votes in the "others" section would be an impressive step forward. Lots of milestones can be reached this season, beyond the elusive NCAA tourney win. I dig the excitement and the potential as much as anyone...but let's be real. Best ever...even by only the eyeball test? MAC basketball has a lot more tradition than that. I'm glad someone is slipping in a little reality every now and then. Top 25? This started with someone saying that anything less than Top-16 would be a dissappointment. Now I think I've seen someone who's been watching practices believe that we could even be better than that? Heck, we've never even BEATEN a Top-25 team. I think you're right. We've never received a single vote as an "others receiving votes" in any legit Top-25 poll.....ever....even with a 26-win team. So, if we win 27 or 28 games we'll not only get votes, but we'll get tons of votes, nationwide, from people who've barely even heard of Akron, and move all the way to the middle section of the Top-25? Dozens of people would all have to change their opinion about Akron, simultaneously, and that's not going to happen. Lets look at what could possibly happen sometime soon, although it still would require an amazing scenario to fall into place... Realistically, if we can somehow find a way to get through maybe our first 10 or 12 games of a season without a loss, maybe that would get 5 or 10 people to possibly change their opinion and vote for us? Where would that put us? Maybe about the 50-60 range? Of course, it would vanish after we lose our first game. But geez, I would consider that a MAJOR step forward for the program, which would be incredibly exciting. In fact, I'll jump for joy the first time we just simply record a win against a Top-25 team. I can go watch as many practices as I want, and I'm quite sure that I couldn't look at this team and predict a sudden and incredible 80 position rise in our national ranking. It's not ever going to happen that fast. Akron is still a nobody to far too many people who matter. Easy, cowboys. Not only was my above quote removed from it's context but was also obviously an emotive statement (note the "?" mark @ the end). Most readers would quickly realize that that was my way of ending on a positive note after concludng my post by saying I still think we'll start the season slowly - perhaps even just like last season when it looked like we'd be a .500 team, not hit 20 wins & not even make the Q. What I did say is that this team passes the eyeball test. In a BIG way. An athletic, muscular 7-footer. (How often does a MAC team ever have one? Athletic & muscular? I suppose CMU's Kaman would be the last.) Not one, but two 6-8 240 lb. power forwards (Tree, Nik). Two 6-7 small forwards who can jump out of the gym (Harney, Egner). Muscular 6-6, 6-4 & 6-5 2Gs (Q, Gilliam & McClanahan, respectively) and a 6-4 backup PG (Walsh). Will they be a Top 25 team? I don't know. No one does. Will they even win the MAC? I don't know. No one does. I'm not commenting on what may be. Maybe they won't be able to all co-exist. I'm simply saying what is. This team is absolutely huge.

Thanks for the insight. I always enjoy former players posting like this.

There are three players who look like triplets. They are Q, CJ Oldham & Nick Harney. CJ is the slightest of the three. I was extremely impressed with Harney today. Q is one of the teams' best, however, as much as I've heard about his improved 3-point shot, it still kind of has a knuckleball motion to it rather than a smooth rotation. However, it does go through the hoop, which is all that matters. KD was really riding Chauncey today. He obviously has extremely high expectations for him. Tree is a physical specimen. I can't believe he's only going to be a freshman. The team just looks absolutely huge. Tall & muscular. Quick feet. Extremely athletic. Rico is as quick as Jimmal Ball (minus the hops). McClanahan looked amazing. He looks like a senior - extremely confident, under control & just effortlessly hits from NBA range. Blake Justice & Deji Ibitayo are both very big. Neither look like true freshmen. Ibitayo's arms are muscular & hang down to his knees. He looked like the #2 PG today, which surprised me. Walsh played more 2G today (someone correct me if I'm mistaken about this), but looks/plays like a veteran already. This team might just be amazing. I'm still going to stick w/ my prediction of a relatively slow start - just like last year. The team will have to learn to play together & It will be interesting watching KD learn which combos play best together & getting his rotations down. Hope I'm wrong! Anyway, I haven't seen a MAC team pass the eyeball test like this since... ever?

+1. Encouraging to see. Also, good to hear a couple of names tossed out. I remember Lee Owens getting me excited to see Andre McRae (sp?) before the season started. Andre rarely disappointed.

Low expectations?

I can't make practice on Sunday. Does anyone know the time of either Monday's or Tuesday's practices?

You always wonder how a "West Virginia HS Defensive POTY" ends up with the Zips. Now you know...he has "baggage." Add him to the long list of too-good-too-be-true Zip recruits. Marcus Sanders...EJ Lilley...Nate Robinson...David Harvey...Derrick Tarver... My favorite name for the list of "never-played-a-game" superstars in blue and gold: Mike Tracy. Halfback from Eastern PA, circa 1981-82. Runner who broke Tony Dorsett's HS rushing records (may have been at Upper Darby HS, too). Akron was in play because the kid was listed as 5-4. Couple weeks before school, word come down, he joined the Army. Now, let me tell ya bout Derrick Tarver... He played, excelled, but played for the wrong coach at the wrong time! +1. I liked Derrick Tarver. I didn't care for Hipsher much.

Thanks for the update! I'm going to try and hit a practice next week. Zeke hit a 3 when I went to see him play in the King James Classic. I believe that was the summer before his senior year of high school. He's extremely coordinated.

Isn't he our first verbal? Yes indeed. Franco was 2nd. I don't think we have a 3rd yet. Wow, did I screw the pooch on that post, or what? And here I thought the floodgates had opened.

Today's ABJ

This stuff is why I love ZN.O. Thanks for the scoops!

Zzzzzing.

Oops. Obviously, that above post was intended to be an Edit, not a Reply.

Hey Zach, thanks for the update from Egner. You're great at following the various guys on twitter. Me? Not so much. Could you post any twitter info you think we'd appreciate? Btw, I just signed up to follow @AkronZipsMBB. Thanks for the tip.

Hey Zach, thanks for the update from Egner. You're great at following the various guys on twitter. Me? Not so much. Could you post any twitter info you think we'd appreciate?

We do?!? Why? It's called an exhibition game. Everyone plays them. I enjoy it when we play either Malone, Walsh or Mount Union. Their fans seem to really appreciate the experience as well.